2005-09-16 :: Computer Woes ::
Guess what happened yesterday, I'm sure you can guess if yyou've read previous dates, or just know how my luck has been going. (ya guessed yet?) My computer stopped working again. This time it shut itself off and refuses to turn back on. I called Brett at work and asked what could the cause be? He said probably got overheated and turned itself off, but the issue is now it can't turn back on. I have to recycle the surge stick just to get any reaction when I hit the power button. Which is only an instantaneous second of power enough to turn on the fan lights and make the fans spin a couple revolutions. Then actually Brett called me back around 730 and said that he gets a 12% discount at Dell because he works at wells fargo. So he actually went on line and ordered a new computer for me because he's tired of trouble shooting this one. So for about $430 I will be having a new tower shipped out to me on the 22nd. Which is sad considering I paid $250 to have this one "fixed".
Music in the background: commercial jingleStress level of the Day: 4/10
2005-09-15 :: Wild's wild quiz ::
I woke up 30 minutes before my alarm went off this morning, and yeah- not getting up yet. Though it always seems your alarm clock goes off exactly right after you fall back asleep. Anyhow, finished off my coffee cake this morning by cutting it into slices and adding some vanilla icing. I of course had a taste test before I gave any to anyone else, and actually I think it's one of the best ones I've made. So I left early to set up for lab and brought a few pieces for the teacher who I help. When the class got down stairs the teacher was so happy I had set up stuff already he said I was the greatest. Ha sure, anyhow. Cable swagging and safety wiring turn buckles, so fun. After lab I drove out to Lowes on the complete opposite side of town because I knew they have ant terro- we suddenly got a ant infestation around the stove. No idea why our kitchen is pretty clean. Maybe because we're on the ground floor? Oh well, it's better than the fly invasion Lorraine had last year =) So then I had the Turbines Quiz that I had memoried formulas for, but unforetunately the quiz was more than what me and quite a few people in class thought it was. He asked for max temps and speeds of the engine and some other section identification numbers (which I could logically do by process of elimination). Currently, I am going to start working on a ARINC homeowrk assignment due tomorrow and then go to 402 where the class is going to look at my week synopsis of aviation fuel prices and airlines affected by it. Then home and work on a 400 assignment of interview questions. And go out to Knickerbocker for some comedy tonight.
Music in the background: misc Bond songStress level of the Day: 6/10
2005-09-14 :: Mindless Ramblings ::
Man, Wednesdays just last forever... My alarm clock woke me out of a deep sleep this morning =/ It was one of those rainy mornings where you could stay in bed for 4 more hours (grin), but alas no, I have a 730 class. I had to go today, we had homework to turn in. So at work today, guess what! More mulch! After this semester is over I am swearing off mulch for the rest of my life (which is easy since I'm moving to AZ). So three hours of hauling mulch around gives you ample time to think of just about anything. So I started thinking about income taxes because for my job state and federal taxes are not taken out because I'm work study and it's the government's money anyway. I started thinking about how the money you make the more tax breaks you get. Now to me that seems unfair. I'm not an economist, so please don't reply to me to say I don't know what I'm talking about. This is my journal, and my space to ramble on. SO, back to taxes. My thoughts are that everyone should pay the same percent (especially for social security). Now perhaps the million dollar sports stars and movie stars probably don't like that idea because that is a lot of money for them. Really though, you don't need ten cars or a eight bedroom house with two indoor swimming pools, an indoor basketbal court, and a kitchen table for twenty. It's all in the ego. They will probably say it's not fair. You wanna know what's not fair. Having to live off of $500/mo where $400 goes to rent, $50 to electric, $40 is for groceries and $10 used to get you a desent amount of fuel though now it costs over $40 to fill my tank. Ah well I had a few other ideas ramble through my head this afternoon, but I don't think I'm ready to discuss those yet. In my avoinics troubleshooting class we went off on a tangent as to why the airlines aren't making any money (because they never have since the government no longer subsidizes them). Lorraine and I were still fabricating the steel pipes to weld together today, *boring*. I tried finding a book on the English Wheel, but there is NOTHING out there. I can't find any projects or a good source of information anywhere on the net. I made my famous cinnamin coffee cake tonight. That should be ready for eating in the morning =) ok, so off to bed for me now then.
Music in the background: noneStress level of the Day: 5/10
2005-09-13 :: Busy Little Me ::
Oh my gosh, this will be my third time trying to post this evening. I think I should blame my internet; it's so patchy at times. Anyhow let me try this again...
The heat continues. They released two schools early today because it was 84*F at 1130. Silly if you ask me because the kids are going to go home and play outside anyway. My Tuesday afternoon class is done now for a bit, yea! When we meet again we will be filling out our airmen 8610 forms to send in to the FAA. I somehow managed to lose my safety glasses since lab yesterday evening. I remember switching to my sunglasses when I got outside after class. Maybe they fell out when I switched my backpack to a different shoulder. Hm, I guess I'll check my car in the AM. Lorraine and I made a nice dinner tonight: chicken, stuffing, cheesey potatoes, and corn. It was delish, and there's leftovers! Well, I should really try to go do my homework for tomorrow morning now- especially since I've been trying to post this for 20 minutes now... After I get that done I have to memorize some formulas for a quiz thursday and then two assignments that are due for Friday. I have three quizzes left that are due by Tuesday next week. cheer me on =)
Stress level of the Day: 5/10
2005-09-12 :: Disappointing Day ::
I got excited today when I read my email because I was told that I had two new entries in my guestbook. So I hurried over to the site to see what they had said. The most recent was cool- a fellow aviator =) The second entry however disappointed me. Someone had decided to give me their political views on how the devistation in LA and MS was handled. Though it was not really their views for this person cut a pasted a letter written to the President by Michael Moore- a man who makes documentaries on 9-11 and Columbine High School, and who rubs dirt and alcohol into still raw wounds.
In case you aren't familiar with how our government is SUPPOSED to work: The chain of responsibility for the protection of the citizens in New Orleans is:
1. The Mayor
2. The New Orleans director of Homeland Security (a political appointee of the Governor who reports to the Governor)
3. The Governor
4. The Head of Homeland Security
5. The President
What did each do? 1. The mayor, with 5 days advance, waited until 2 days before he announced a mandatory evacuation (at the behest of the President). Then he failed to provide transportation for those without transport even though he had hundreds of buses at his disposal.
2. The New Orleans director of Homeland Security failed to have any plan for a contingency that has been talked about for 50 years. Then he blames the Feds for not doing what he should have done. (So much for political appointees)
3. The Governor, despite a declaration of disaster by the President 2 DAYS BEFORE the storm hit, failed to take advantage of the offer of Federal troops and aid until 2 DAYS AFTER the storm hit.(And how are troops supposed to get to a flooded city? It's not going to happen overnight, thank you!)
4. The Director of Homeland Security positioned assets in the area to be ready when the Governor called for them.
5. The President urged a mandatory evacuation, and even declared a disaster State of Emergency, freeing up millions of dollars of federal assistance, should the Governor decide to use it.
Oh and by the way, the levees that broke were the responsibility of the local landowners and the local levee board to maintain, NOT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.
And as for Michael Moore and his "where are the helicopters?" HERE!!! Just read the news please... New Orleans Man Arrested, Accused of Shooting at Rescue Helicopter The Associated Press Published: Sep 6, 2005 NEW ORLEANS (AP) - A New Orleans man was arrested and charged with shooting at a military rescue helicopter.
Here's a bit of info for ya too. The government cannot mobilize troops UNTIL the governor declares Marshall Law. Hence why only Coast Guard were there... And helicopter cannot just pick up and fly across the atlantic to help. They need to be transported in an aircraft or be shipped over on a carrier. Oh yeah, and how about the three air force bases under water too. But hey you know Michael Moore said there should be helicopters... so I guess we should all stop and do what he says and does... And here are some good CNN reports on the: MAYOR and GOVERNOR Music in the background: System of a Down-Toxicity
Stress level of the Day: 4/10
2005-09-12 :: Gettin out the old books ::
I think the arizona weather followed me here. It's been 90's all week everyweek. Of course the humidity is all the midwest. We're going to be testing metals tensile strength in MET lab. The teacher said tensile strength is like the key they have in an engine that turns and can break if enough force is put on it, it will break off so as not to damage the engine. Though I could swear we learned in Turbines class that it is called a SHEAR shaft, not tensile. But whatever, maybe thats why engineers seem dumb by the time we worm them on projects- because they are taught wrong. Oh well, not my problem. I have all my old sheet metal books to support me =)
Music in the background: tvStress level of the Day: 2/10
2005-09-10 :: michigan down ::
You know I may have a great deal of disgust for Notre Dame, but the fact that they are kicking #3 Univ of Michigan is quite exhilarating! Not to mention the ND QB has had 4 passes struck down in the game AND fumbled the ball at the 1 yard line during a quarter back sneak in the last 5 minutes of the game! At 17-3 Notre Dmae, Michigan is looking is take a nose dive in the rankings and lose their chance at the BCS championship bowl game =) And two under review plays in the fourth quarter both going to Notre Dame, I love the reaction of the fans throwing empty bottles and cans on to the field. Great showing of sportsmanship. The replays definitely support the calls, SO EAT IT MICHIGAN!! I haven't been able to watch the Purdue game on TV, it's only on ESPN360 and my internet provider doesnt offer that. So I've been watching the play by play via Yahoo Sports Game Channel. I've also been watching the other big ten teams.
Picture I took from hangar 1 at school. The two aircrafts out side are a Boeing 727-100 (left) and a Boeing 737-222(right). The planes inside the hangar are a Piper Tomahawk (closest left), an Arapahoe (farther left one of only four and greatly over-powered for its size), and a Cessna 310R (right).
Stress level of the Day: 2/10
2005-09-09 :: yes homework ::
Yes Friday, life is good. Went to my 400 class at 830. We are talking about the important things to focus on during the interview, being prepared for questions, and the importance of the closing. We will be doing mock interviews in about 3 weeks. So after class I'm off to work again. Still cleaning up the "mini forest". I think it was pretty much done. We only need to mow over the high weeds and grass and then come in with the mulch. We were again the center of attention, and we were still killing mother nature, lol. Now, I know I'm not a business major... but for some reason we're moving the branched we cut off the trees 30 yards away and piling them by the dumpster where we will come back and load the truck at another day to move to the site where the city will pick it up. Wouldnt it make sense to put the to together and load the truck as we move the branched. I dunno whatever the boss thinks works. I get paid no matter what. Somehow I managed to get a nice sized gash above my left ankle where my work boots ended. Its not deep but it is about 6 inches long and kinda of an arc. It was a nice bleeder. Then I went to 375 lecture and I finished my prelab for monday. Now I'm trying to decided what homework to get out of the way. YES homework on Friday night. I'm finding I'd rather get my homework done on the weekend so the week isnt so stressful. I was going to do my MET homework but the stupid engineers have to have their own special paper to do homework and a specific format called GFSA which requires a specific location for the homework assignment number, class, name, date, number of pages, SEAT NUMBER, and STAPLE... hello, the freakin staple has to be at an angle- it cant be parallel to the top of the page. Who ever made this format needs to get a life. Oh not only that but the paper must be 8.5x11 inches. We're supposed to measure it to be sure because sometimes paper may say it is- but isn't. That's okay, I guess. So now I'll just bug the teacher to make sure I am doing it right. So back to studying for my last 6 quizzes I suppose.
I just got a call from Lorraine, my roomie. She's like, I forgot to tell you I was going to Atlanta this weekend. LOL I guess so, she's already there.
Stress level of the Day: 2/10
